[Unofficial translation provided by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre]

“Labour ministry officials move to Coupang amid ongoing controversies over overwork and blacklist allegations”, 27 May 2025

At least five mid-level officials from South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labour are set to join Coupang, a major e-commerce and logistics firm, in June—a move drawing criticism given the company’s ongoing controversies over worker deaths from overwork and alleged union blacklisting. The scale and concentration of such job transitions to a single company are highly unusual, raising concerns over potential conflicts of interest and regulatory capture.

According to investigative reports, officials moving to Coupang CLS (Coupang Logistics Services) include senior inspectors and section chiefs from labour inspection, industrial accident prevention, and labour relations departments. They are expected to resign from public office on 31 May. Additional officials are reportedly undergoing similar procedures.

While South Korean law restricts post-retirement employment for officials with direct oversight responsibilities, (…) those below Grade 4—like the officials in question—are exempt. (…)Labour advocacy groups argue that, although legal, the mass hiring of former labour regulators by a company under repeated scrutiny creates a serious ethical issue.

…Kang Min-wook, Vice-Chair of the Delivery Workers’ Union, criticised the moves as morally problematic, noting that Coupang has a history of recruiting former police officers and political aides to strengthen its lobbying efforts whenever administrations change. He questioned whether the firm was pre-emptively insulating itself against future regulatory scrutiny.

…Coupang CLS stated that the recruitment reflected its efforts to bring in highly qualified professionals and improve its labour and safety compliance systems.